Exclusive Whisky Tasting with Glenmorangie Global Brand Ambassador

I had  the pleasure of attending a Glenmorangie tasting at Villa Rosa Kempinski hosted by the Glenmorangie Global Brand Ambassador, Hamish Torie. It was his maiden visit to Kenya and he met with single malt lovers around Nairobi for a whisky tasting.

Glenmorangie is a single malt Scotch founded by William Matheson in the Scottish Highlands in 1843. The whisky has a fascinating history that adds to the tradition of a great whisky and I was excited to have lunch and taste some Glenmorangie with the Global Brand Ambassador. Glenmorangie has been voted Master Distiller of the Year by the International Wines & Spirits Council twice in a row.

Villa Rosa Kempinski put together a great menu for the tasting. For starters, there was Caprese con Mozzarella and Mediterranean seafood bisque. This was paired with Glenmorangie The Original. The Glenmorangie Original is the original expression of the whisky and is a 10 year old single malt matured in American white oak casks. The vanilla notes and fruity finish paired well with the savoury starters.

For mains, there was the option of either beef tenderloin in green peppercorn and marsala wine cream sauce or risotto with prawns, calamari, cod fish and tomato concasse’. I opted for the risotto. This was paired with The Lasanta. The Lasanta is a 12 year old single malt matured for 10 years in American white oak bourbon casks before and then for a further 2 years in Oloroso and PX Sherry casks from Jerez in Spain. The notes of butterscotch, sultanas and wallnuts and spiced orange and chocolate finish paired well with the savoury risotto.

For dessert, was a decadent Italian traditional tiramisu. This was paired with The Quinta Ruban. The darkest and most intense whisky in the extra-matured range, Glenmorangie Quinta Ruban has spent 10 years maturing in American white oak casks, before being transferred into specially selected ruby port pipes from the Quintas or wine estates of Portugal. The mint chocolate notes and the dark chocolate finish made it the perfect pairing for the tiramisu.

Hamish Torrie was passionate as he took us through lunch and the whisky tasting  and noted that Glenmorangie single malt sees Kenya as the lead country in the region where the growth opportunity is very exciting and that he was impressed by the knowledge and enthusiasm Kenyans have demonstrated for Single Malt Whisky and in particular Glenmorangie. All in all, it was a wonderful afternoon and I look forward to learning and experiencing more of great whisky.